I’ve got a couple different “home defense” rifles in the safe, stacked away just in case. Not all of them are tactical masterpieces — some just need to be functional and they are.
I was looking for a cheap way to mount a SureFire weapon light on the rail of one of these guns and the ERGO Grips Tactical Light Switch Mount Kit popped up on Amazon. With a retail price of about $15, I figured it was worth a try, and I think I got my money’s worth. Which isn’t really a glowing recommendation.
Having a weapon mounted light on your defensive rifle is like having headlights on your car. It just makes sense and frequently comes in really handy. Nearly half your lifetime is spent in the dark hours of the day (even though you may not be conscious for most of them), and instances of looting or other violent civil strife are more likely to happen under the cover of darkness.
When it comes down to it, you need to see your target to hit your target, and having a weapon-mounted light helps in that department. A tape switch on that weapon light helps maintain your cover, only illuminating the target when it really matters and allowing you to stay a bit more stealthy otherwise.
There are a number of flashlight manufacturers out there that have tape switches available for their lights. Mounting those tape switches to the forend of your rifle can be tricky, though. SureFire sells specific rail attachment designed tape switches for around $100, but the standard tape switch is more attractive at about $65.
In my case, if you already have a tape switch laying around it’s way easier to just buy a rail mounting kit than a whole new assembly. The easiest mount is just some medical tape wrapped around the forend of your rifle, but that looks awful and won’t last very long.
Other options out there like the CD LCS MKI are about $70, which still isn’t cheap. And that explains why the $16 ERGO Grip mount kit is an appealing option.
As others have noted, the kit doesn’t correctly fit a SureFire tape switch pad without some modification. In my case I needed to grab a pocket knife and carve out the inner sides of the mount to make my switch fit. That took a bit of work and isn’t the prettiest modification I’d ever done. That said, it was very functional — it held the tape switch in place and clamped firmly to the rail.
The biggest complaint I have about this unit is the size. I get that this is a plastic holder and there are some constraints with that medium, and I think they did a pretty good job in general with the design.
The sides are angled and should fit nicely on a quad rail setup, but on something a little more svelte, the sides stick out a bit and are slightly annoying to work with. I feel like they could have made it a little smaller in terms of the overall footprint while maintaining the same functionality. The good news is that a little more work with a pocket knife can make that dream a reality.
Personally, I think that you shouldn’t need to modify a product to make it fit your needs, especially if all of the other parts are common and of a standard size. This could have been an easy fix at the factory, but instead I’m here trying not to slice my finger open while modifying this part. Even then, it is only a $16 investment so I guess I got what I paid for here. And it works.
Price isn’t everything, but it sure can make a big difference on some things……….and if it gets damaged then buy another.
very nice work for “memecenter”
http://www.memecenter.com/outlink/go/https://is.gd/infowarsAlexjones/c364dc61351eae4ec9280eb93df8a7298017ad5c3184fb90c5136c73435589ce
Is this article a rerun, or is our old friend Nick Leghorn back?
If the later, “Welcome back Nick”
He’s never really been gone. Just busy with other things. This is a new one and he has another in the hopper.
Art,
I was wondering exactly the same.
Welcome back Nick”
Cloud defensive has the GOAT light switch mount
i prefer hitting the button on the back of the light itself
i dont like the idea of a wire that can get snagged on something or yanked out in a struggle
i mount it on the rh side of the rail just forward enough that whichever hand is on the vertical grip the thumb can get the light so its totally ambi
all my ar pattern lights are streamlight protac 10 tap programmables set to 2 modes full on and off
500 lumens on the 10.5s and 1000 on the 16.5s they all have the momentary on off just like a tape switch
theyre set into qd mounts so i can take them off before i go to the range or use them as a handheld if i need to
im not leo or an operator just a regular guy but i dont think i would ever use a tape switch even if somebody gave me one
+1 on this set up. I had a tape switch for a while with the light on the left, but after trying the thumb activation on the right side once I never looked back.
“The biggest complaint I have about this unit is the size”
Said no woman, ever.
I ran a pressure switch for years until I got my first Inforce WML, now on my 14 1/2 I have the WMLx w/ IR. We were doing low light drills and one of our guys had his pressure switch fail, that’s when I started looking for other options. With the built in IR illuminator on the WMLx I was able to hit at 100 yards steadily. Back in the Army you were lucky to see beyond 50 yards, so this stuff has came a long way since the before 2010. Not that I would ever really need to use it, but it does work. I mean, if your nods can see it, so can theirs. I bought it when I was just getting into that stuff so whatever. With just nods it’s a little bit harder to acquire a sight picture unless you are using an IR Laser, which you should have if you invest in nods obviously. I know some folks who use IR for hunting, so they have it in their scopes which can be helpful I guess… I don’t know, not my intention honestly, and I don’t own a single night vision optic other than nods.
Inforce is also easier to program than the 10 tap in streamlights, it’s just a switch. I have never personally bought surefire anything, but used them in the military. For the price and what they offer, streamlight makes much more sense and there is no proof that surefire is any better at anything other than being the first to bid on a government contract.
“Montana Actual says:
September 20, 2020 at 23:39
“The biggest complaint I have about this unit is the size”
Said no woman, ever.”
Look here ‘little richard Montana dude’ That is something you obviously know little about. Speak to your strengths and not your fantasy. Not funny, having your cervix abused is not fun.
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Wow, get that Montana man some burn ointment.
LOL.
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Love the Cloud Defensive mounts. I’d use this a temp solution for a month or two if spreading the cost of the switch and mount out. $200 for a DS07 and mount plus $240 or so for a M600DF or M500 and even more if you need IR. Looks better than a bunch of zip ties
Which isn’t really a glowing recommendation . Then enter the employee ID associated with password. I figured it was worth a try, and I think I got my money’s worth
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